Toiletries dispenser for shower



May 28, 1963 H. v. PALMER TOILETRIES DISPENSER FOR SHOWER 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed April 17, 1962 INVENTOR. HAROLD VERNON PALMER May 28, 1963 H. v. PALMER TOILETRIES DISPENSER FOR SHOWER 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed April 17, 1962 JIVIII r// INVENTOR. HAROLD VERNON PALMER BY flail/5mm United States Patent 3,091,402 TOILETRIES DISPENSER FOR SHOWER Harold Vernon Palmer, 6192 La Jolla Mesa Drive, La Jolla, Calif. Filed Apr. 17, 1962, Ser. No. 188,032, 9 Claims. (Cl. 239315) The present invention relates generally to bathroom fixtures and more particularly to a toiletries dispenser for a shower.

The primary object of this invention is to provide a toletries dispenser 'for attachment between the water pipe and shower head of a shower, in which a rotatable turret type holder carries containers of various toiletries which may be selectively added to the flow of water from the shower in any desired amounts.

Another object of this invention is to provide a toiletries dispenser in which the rotatable holder contains an individual mixing chamber for each substance to ensure proper mixing with the water, yet prevent undesirable intermixing of the various toletries.

Another object of this invention is to proivde a toiletries dispenser having valve means to control the total volume of flow.

A further object of this invention is to provide a toiletries dispenser which is capable of handling liquid, gelatinous, solid, gaseous, or even pressurized toilet substances.

Finally, it is an object to provide a toiletries dispenser of the aforementioned character which is simple and convenient to manufacture and use and which will give generally efficient and durable service.

With these and other objects definitely in view, this invention consists in the novel construction, combination, and arrangement of elements and portions, as will be hereinafter fully described in the specification, particularly pointed out in the claims, and illustrated in the drawings which form a material part of this disclosure, and in which:

FIGURE 1 is a side elevation view of the complete dispenser;

FIGURE 2 is a sectional view taken on line 22 of FIGURE 1;

FIGURE 3 is a sectional view taken on line 33 of FIGURE 1;

FIGURE 4 is a sectional View taken on line 44 of FIGURE 3; and

FIGURE 5 is a sectional view, similar to FIGURE 4, of a modified form of the dispenser.

Construction Referring now to FIGURES 1-4 of the drawings, the unit comprises a cylindrical barrel on which is mounted an axially rotatable body or turret 12 containing a plurality of mixing chambers 16 and having an upwardly and outwardly inclined holder socket portion 18 communicating with each mixing chamber through an injection port 20, as in FIGURE 3. The barrel 10 has a threaded upper end 22 to receive a clamp nut 24, which is attached to the ball end 26 of a water supply pipe 28, as for a conventional adjustable shower head connection. A direct, non-swivelling connection may also be made if adjustab-ility is not needed.

The barrel 10 has a pair of spaced radially projecting rings 30 which fit into corresponding grooves 32 in turret '12 to hold the turret against axial displacement, the ring and groove structure also assisting in sealing the rotary connection against leakage.

In the upper end of barrel 10 is a tightly fitting sleeve 34, of plastic or the like, said sleeve having a flange 36 which rests on the end of said barrel and provides a "Ice smoothly swivelling seat for the ball end 26. Immediatcly below the upper ring 30' is a bypass port 38 through the barrel 10 and sleeve 34, and spaced axially therefrom is a return port 40 in the barrel. Each mixing chamber 16 has an inlet port 42 and outlet port 44 spaced for alignment with the bypass port 38 and return port 40, respectively. The lower end of sleeve 34 has a perforated b-affle portion 46 which obstructs the flow of water and causes a portion of the flow to be diverted through 0 the bypass port 38, into the mixing chamber 16 aligned therewith, and back into the barrel 10 through return port 41 The lower end of barrel 10 has a threaded portion 48, to which a shower head 50 is attached by means of a connecting collar 52. Shower head 50 is of domed configuration and has a lower perforated plate 54 through which water is distributed. In the upper, neck portion 56 of shower head 50 is a valve 58, illustrated as a rotatable drum element with a tapered flow passage 60, said valve being operable by means of a suitable handle 62 to control the flow of water into the shower head. This valve structure assures confluence and proper mixing of the toiletries with the water. Other types of valves may be used to suit the size and shape of shower head and the degree of flow control desired.

Each of the socket portions 18 can hold a container 64 or toilet substance, those illustrated being of the plastic squeeze bottle type and said socket portions having screw threads 66 to fit the necks of said containers. It should be understood, however, that various containers and securing means may be used, the screw-in type squeeze bottle merely :being a convenient example. If a certain socket portion 18 is not used for toiletries, the respective socket portion can be sealed by a simple blanking cap 68, as in FIGURE 2.

Use of the Dispenser The dispenser can be loaded with containers of various toiletries, such as soaps, perfumes, deodorants, skin treatments products and the like, in the form of liquid, paste or gelatinous material, powder, or any form which can be injected into the mixing chamber and be dissolved in or mixed with the water. The containers 64 may be plastic bottles, as illustrated, collapsible tubes, or even aerosol type cans, from which the substances can be ejected. The turret 12 is rotated so that the mixing chamber 16 having the socket portion 18 carrying the required substance is aligned with the ports in the barrel It). To ensure proper alignment of the ports of the barrel 10 and mixing chamber 16, the barrel 10 contains a spring loaded detent 63 which registers with suitably position indexing sockets in the turret 12, as in FIG- URE 3. In addition, the turret 12 may be provided with markers 67 which can be registered with a fixed reference marker 69 on the connecting collar 52, or some other convenient portion, as in FIGURE 1, to show which toiletry substance is in position for use.

Water passing through the barrel 10 from supply pipe 23 will be partially diverted through the selected mixing chamber 16, the flow being indicated by directional arrows in FIGURE 3. This will in no way interfere with normal shower use. When the toilet substance is needed, the appropriate container 64 is squeezed, or otherwise actuated, to dispense the substance through the injection port 20 into the mixing chamber 16 in any required quantity. Water circulation through the mixing chamber provides a good mixing and combination of the injected substance with the water. The mixture returns to the main flow in bar-rel 10 through the aligned outlet port 44 and return port 40 and is ejected from the shower head 50. Applications of any particular substance can be repeated as needed, or the turret 12 can be easily turned to select other toiletries. Flow can be controlled by the valve 58, allowing the water temperature to be pre-adjusted by the usual hot and 'cold faucets and maintained, regardless of volume of flow.

Simplified Structure A simplified form of the dispenser is illustrated in FIG- URE 5, in which the barrel 7% is a plain cylindrical element and the turret 7 2 has threaded holder sockets 7 6 with injection ports 78 leading directly to the barrel 70, said barrel having a single inlet port 80 with which said injection ports can be selectively aligned by rotating the turret. The turret 72 is held between upper and lower retaining nuts 82, threaded on barrel 70, said retaining nuts having annular ribs 83 which seat in grooves 84 in the turret for compactness and to improve sealing.

The upper end of barrel 70 contains an open ended sleeve 36 providing a seat for the water pipe ball end 26, and is held in place by clamp nut 24 as previously described. The lower end of barrel 70 is fitted with a connecting collar 52 for attachment of a shower head, indicated fragmentarily at 88, which may be of conventional type, or fitted with a flow control valve as in shower head 50. V

The sockets 76 hold containers 64 or may be closed by blanking caps 68, as required, the selected toiletry being injected directly into the water stream in the barrel 70. With many easily soluble substances sufiicient mixing willoccur in the shower head.

The dispenser is adaptable to existing plumbing and may be added to virtually any shower outlet. Dispensation of toiletries is controlled and readily selective.

"When not needed, the turret can be turned slightly so that none of the ports from the toiletry containers are in communication with the water flow, thus avoiding possible back-up of water into the containers.

The dispenser is neat in appearance and serves as a convenient storage for toiletries, since the individual containers are easily removed for use other than in conjunction with the shower. The turret body can be constructed to hold any desired number of containers, the arrangement of four as illustrated being merely an example.

It is understood that minor variation from the form of the invention disclosed herein may be made without departure from the spirit and scope of the invention, and that the specification and drawing are to be considered as merely illustrative rather than limiting.

I claim:

1. A toiletries dispenser for a shower, comprising:

a substantially cylindrical water conducting barrel having means at one end thereof for attachment to the water supply pipe of a shower and outlet means at the :other end;

a turret axially rotatably mounted on said barrel and having a plurality of holder portions each to receive and hold a closed container of toiletry substance;

said barrel having an inlet port;

and ports in said turret communicating from said holder portions to said barrel for selective alignment with said inlet port by rotation of said turret, whereby toiletry substance may be selectively dispensed to enterthe water conducting barrel intermediate the ends thereof.

2. A toiletries dispenser according to claim 1 and including a shower head fixed directly to the other end of said barrel.

3. A toiletries dispenser for a shower, comprising:

a substantially cylindrical Water conducting barrel having means at one end thereof for attachment to the water supply pipe of a shower;

a turret axially rotatably mounted on said barrel and having a plurality of holder portions each to receive and hold a container of toiletry substance;

said turret having mixing chambers therein and an injection port from each mixing chamber to one of said holder portions;

said barrel having a bypass port, and a return port longitudinally spaced therefrom;

each of said mixing chambers having an inlet port and an outlet port corresponding to said bypass port and said return port selectively, and for selective alignment therewith by rotation of said turret, whereby water may be bypassed from said barrel through said mixing chambers individually.

4. A toiletries dispenser for a shower, comprising:

a substantially cylindrical water conducting barrel having means at one end thereof for attachment to the water supply pipe of ashower;

a turret axially rotatably mounted on said barrel and having a plurality of holder portions each to receive and hold a container of toiletry substance;

said turret having mixing chambers therein and an injection port from each mixing chamber to one of said holder poitions;

said barrel having a bypass .port, and a return port longitudinally spaced therefrom;

baffle means in said barrel adjacent said bypass port to divert a portion of the water in said barrel through the bypass port;

each of said mixing chambers having an inlet port and an outlet port corresponding to said bypass port and said return port selectively, and for selective alignment therewith by rotation of said turret, whereby water may be bypassed from said barrel through said mixing chambers individually.

5. A toiletries dispenser according to claim 4 and including a shower head operatively connected on the other end of said bar-rel;

said shower head having a flow control valve adjustable to control the total flow therethrough.

6. A toiletries dispenser according to claim 5 wherein said valve comprises a rotatable drum valve element having a tapered flow passage to assure confluence and mixing of the toiletries and water.

7. A toiletries dispenser according to claim 5 wherein said barrel and shower head are in relatively fixed relation while said turret is shiftable relative thereto.

8. A toiletries dispenser for a shower, comprising:

a substantially cylindrical water conducting barrel having means at one end thereof for attachment to the water supply of a shower and outlet means at the other end;

a turret axially rotatably mounted on said barrel and having a plurality of holder portions;

a dispensing container remoV-ably secured to each holder portion;

said barrel having an inlet port;

and ponts in said turret communicating from said holder portions to said barrel for selective alignment with said inlet port by rotation of said turret, whereby toiletry substance may be selectively dispensed to enter the water conducting barrel intermediate the ends thereof.

9. A toiletries dispenser for a shower, comprising:

a substantially cylindrical water conducting barrel having means at one end thereof for attachment to the water supply pipe of a shower and outlet means at the other end;

a turret axially rotatably mounted on said barrel and having a plurality of holder portions;

a dispensing container removably secured to each holder portion;

said turret having mixing chambers therein and an injection port from each mixing chamber to one of said holder portions;

said barrel having a bypass port, and a return port longitudinally spaced therefrom;

each of said mixing chambers having an inlet port corresponding to said bypass port and said return port 5 selectively, and for selective alignment therewith by rotation of said turret, whereby water may be bypassed from said barrel through said mixing ehambers individually.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 877,045 Brooks Jan. 21, 1908 6 Pulkinghorn May 6, 1930 M agowan Jan. 24, 1950 Otto et va1 July 8, 1952 Gundlach May 1, 1956 Lambton Oct. 10, 1961 FOREIGN PATENTS France Feb. 10, 1931 

1. A TOILETRIES DISPENSER FOR A SHOWER, COMPRISING: A SUBSTANTIALLY CYLINDRICAL WATER CONDUCTING BARREL HAVING MEANS AT ONE END THEREOF FOR ATTACHMENT TO THE WATER SUPPLY PIPE OF A SHOWER AND OUTLET MEANS AT THE OTHER END; A TURRET AXIALLY ROTATABLY MOUNTED ON SAID BARREL AND HAVING A PLURALITY OF HOLDER PORTIONS EACH TO RECEIVE 